Feathering-blade propeller.



' o; W. VAN WINKLB.

FEATHEEING BLADE PROPELLER.

` APPLIUATIDN FILED MAB. 27, 1909.

Patented Apr. 12,1910.

f, 2 Sunnis-snm s.

A UNITED srArE cHaRLEs W. VAN WINKLE, or WHITE PLAINS, NEW YORK.

FEATHERING-BLADE PRQPELLER.

Specification ofiLettcrs Patent. lndelltd Apr, 12', 1910.

Application filed March 27', 1909. Serial No. 486,257.

Be. it known that'. I, (IIARLES 'll'. VAN vQVINKLE, a citizen ot' the United States, re-

.Isiding .at lVhit'e Plains, in the countyv ol' Westchester and b'tate of New York, have V- invented.certain new and useful ln1provements in lfeatheriii-gdlade Propellerst oli which the following is a speeificatimi, reiterence being Vhad to the. accompanying draw- ,r'y'fings .l 'lfhis linvention relates to improvements 1n featherin-g blade propellers especially adapt ed for use in propelling, lifting, steering andvstopping air-ships, but Which may be "used for other purposes.

The object of'the invention is to provide a simple a.1nl1.naetical propeller ot' this *charact'e-rwit-h improved means for feathering its blades and. for enabling the blades to Zollbc feathered 'at vdifferent points in their i5" 1 circle. of' rotation, thereby permitting the lfpropeller to be effectivelyl used for propelling and` controlling an air-ship. With the above and other objects in vie-W, 2.,. the'v invention consists inV the conibinatimis y fand arrangements of parts and in the novel i'f'featnresot"construction hereinafter fully described: and claimed, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in Which- To all 'whomfit may concern:

3e Figure-1v is. a: View ofthe inner side of the 'rotaryv blade carrying member, )arts being E l broken awayfan'd 1n sectIoI-i ,lt-1g. 2 a horijzon-tal section taken on the plane indicated th er cam s.

h'iehg-has suitably fined to it for 'rotation t erewithl inf-blade carrying 'member 2;v As

f 'cyl'in viiical: body and ,has in one of its sidesr-am annnl'arfeavity-or chamber 3Wlnch shaft' 1 andv tio-lock the member or-body '2 tothe'shaft foi-'rotation-therewith, a longi tudinal key G is preferably provided, as '55. shown'more'elearly inV Figs.' 1 and 2 of the dnayvings. When the propeller is secured Il' the drawings 1 denotes a rotary shaft lll'nstrated, the'1nember'2 is in the :torni ofl 59provides'7ai hubv 4 a concentric -ri'rn 5'.-

'Ehe hub- 4@- has Van opening to receive the` on one end of the shaft, said end 1nay,"if desired, be tapered longitudinally and it may be provided With' a reduced threaded stem 'r' to receive a retaining nut 8, the latter beingl arranged. in a cavity 9 formed in the outer side ot' the member 2 and closed by a screw cap 1t), as clearly shown-in Fig. 2.

11 denotes the blades or Wings Which may be ot any suitable 'form and construction and which/are provided with stems or jivots 1Q. and are rotatable therein' so that the blades can ieather. As illustra-ted, the pivots 12 have the blades 11 bolted, as shown'at 13, o r otherwise secured to their forked .or recessed outer ends.A The inne-r endsof'the pivots.

project through bearing opci'iings 111. formed :inI the rim 5 and in the bearing sockets 15 formed inthe hub Il. To retain said pivots In the member 2, eollarsvlG, 17 are fixed to them on 'opposite sides of the rim 5 and Washers 18 are preferably interposed-'between the inner collars 17 and the rim, as clearlyshown in F 1 and 2`of the dra-W- in ll'hile this is the preferred manner' of constructing and mounting the blades and their pivots, it will be understood that they' .may be othern-'ise constructed and mounted.

l'or the purpose' of causing the-blades'to feather and maintaining them in either their operative position or their linoperatiye feathered position, holding members`19 are arranged upon the pivots 12' and adapted to co-art 'with cams 20, 21 arranged upon, a car rying member 22 In t'he forni of aplate or Y lieaduvliieh closes tlieopen 'side of the cavity 3 inthe member or body 2 of the propeller. The ca1ns20, 21 are in the form' of ribs projecting i'rom the inner face of the head 22 ain1 arranged concentrically With respect. to each other, the cam rib 21, however, being of less diameter than 'the cam rib 20 'and' of slightly greater lengtl'r than the 'sa-ine,v as clearly shou'n in` Fig. 3.' The holding inem- 'bers 19 are preferably in the form ofX- lshaped or cross-shaped blocks suitably fixed' The latter radiate 'from the inem er 2 l in order that such blade will be held squarely to the wind orin an operative position when the cross arm 23 is engaged with the cam rib 'and since the other cross arm 24 is disposed in a plane at right angles tothe cross arm 23, it will be in a lane parallel with the blade`11 carried by t e pivot 12 so that ribs onto the other and in so doing will make a quarter turn and thereby turn the blade position. To accomplis either into the' wind or out of the wind. The holding members 19 are preferably fixed to the pivots 12 by provid-ing them with centrally arranged, lsquare or flat faced openings 27 to receive similar-shaped portions 28 on the pivots 12, on which portions said members 19 are secured by transverse pins 29 or similar fastenings It will be seen that when the holding members 19 pass over the cam rib 20 the blades willbe held to the wind or in an operative position, and that when they ass over the cam rib 21 they will be held wit their edges to the wind or in a feathered position. v

To permit theblades to be feathered at different portions of the propeller or their circle ofmovement, I may provide any suitable means for.shifting the cam carrying member 22 and retainin it in the desired this object, the member 2 is'suitably fixed to a sleeve 30 which surrounds androtates upon the shaft l and which may be provided with a radially projectingarm 31 having a suitable ac tuating and holdingrod or other connection 32` pivoted to it, as shown in Fig. 2 of the drawings. It will be seen that by shifting the cam carrying member' 22 around the shaft 1 the blades maybe caused to feather at the top, bottom, front, rear or any intermediate ortion of the propeller, thereby enabling tie latter to bc effectively used for lifting, steering, stopping or otherwise controlling the movement of an air-ship as Well as for propelling the same vin a forward direction. l y

In operation, it will be seen that when lthe cam carrying member 22. is held stationary and the shaft 1 is rotated, the blades 11 will rotate with the member 2 on saidshaft and the two cam` ribs *20, 21.V When the cross 4arms 23 of said holding members havcvtheir' flat side faces bearing against the edge of .the cam rib 20, the blades 11 on such plvots 'i 12 Will'be held to the wind until the cross arms reac'h'the end of the cam rib 20, whereupon the cross arms 22 engage the adjacent end of the cam rib 21 and' are caused to make a quarter turn tofeather the blade and then bear against such cam rib to retain the blade in feathered position until the cross arm 2/1 disengages the cam rib 20, as will be readily understood upon reference to Figs. 1, 2v and 4t of the drawings. Then it is desired to cause the blades to feather at different points of the propeller or the circle of movement of the blades', the operating and holding element 32 is moved to rotate the sleeve 30 and hence the cam carrying member or plate 22 on the shaft 1, as above explained.

It will be noted lthat the blades will feather when the Shaft. 1 is reversed as well as when it is turned in its normal or forward direction.

While the invention is especially adapted for use as a propeller for an air-ship, it willbe understood that -it may be used upon other machines and for other purposes, and it will also be understood that While the preferred embodiment of the invention has been shown vand described in detail, various chan-ges in ,the form, proportion and ar` rangement of part-s and in the details of construction maybe resorted to without departing from the spiritand scope of the invention.l A

Having thus described is claimed is: v I

1. In a propeller of the character de-4 scribed, th'e combination of 'a rotary shaft, a blade carrying member fixed to said shaft for rotation therewith, blades having piv`- ots arranged radially in said member for rotation, a cam carrying member upon said shaft, the curved cam ribs 20, 21 arranged on vsaid cam carrying member concentric with the shaft and at different distances therefrom and the X-sha ed holding members 19 fixed to said bla e pivots and each having the oppositely projecting flat faced cross arms 2,3 to co-act with the cam rib 20 and the oppositcly projectngcross arms 24 offset from the cross arms 23 and disp'osed in a plane at right angles thereto and adapted to cosact with the cam rib 21, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

2. In a propeller 'of l the character dcthe invention what scribed, ,the cmbination of a rotary shaft, l

a hollow blade carrying member fixed to said shaft and having a hub, an annular rim and Aa connecting side 4or end portion, said rim and hub being formed with vradially 'alined bearings, blades having pivots rotween thc rim and hub, nuts upon the threaded portions of said pivots to retain them in the rim, a sleeve upon sald shaft',

:i rela-tively stationary cam carrying plate i the cross arms Ziofset from the'ai'ms 23 fixed to said sleeve and adapted to close the opening in the side or end of said blade euri-.ying member, the cam ribs 2O and 2l projecting from said plate and into said member, said ribs being arranged concenti'ie with the Shu'ft and at different distances therefrom, the X-shaped holding members 1) fixed to the dat faced portions of said pivots nndeaeh having the'lat faced cross arms Q3' to co-uct with the cam rib 20 and and disposed in a plane at right angles thereto and adapted to co-act with the cam rib Q1 'and means for rotating said Sleeve.

In testimony whereof I hereunto ax my signature in the presence of. two Witnesses.

Vl'CIJIARLPES W. VAN WINKLE. 

